Letters

On the Nov. 2 opinion page, Heather Mueller wrote about the substance abuse prevention policies of the candidates for Lancaster County sheriff.
Unfortunately, the information she provided about DARE’s curriculum is outdated. DARE has been implementing Keepin’ It REAL for more than eight years. This curriculum is labeled “evidence-based” or effective by the very National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices that she touts for its veracity, which lists DARE as a provider.

I would just like to speak out for a beautiful, kind lady who has done a lot for the citizens of Lancaster.
Her name is Linda Blackmon. I would like to thank her. She used to own the house next door to me on 14th Street.
Thank you, Linda, and congratulations on winning the city council election. God bless.

Lancaster County homeowners should have received their tax bills, which must be paid by Jan. 17, 2017, to avoid penalties.
If you have not received your tax bill, please contact our office. We will help locate your bill and make sure we have the correct address on file for you.
If your tax bill is in escrow, the original bill is mailed to the taxpayer. The mortgage company will gather their information electronically from us. To make sure proper payment is made, you can forward the mortgage company your bill.

As many of you know, I have made the difficult decision to move my flower shop from Main Street in downtown Lancaster over the past few weeks.

When I tell you difficult, yes it was that! My little Main Street corner location was a great start for my business. From the beginning stages of exploring the idea, my great friend and longtime Realtor colleague Joni Plyler found the spot for me, and the vision immediately took shape. The responses and support from Lancaster have been overwhelming over the last three years.

We would like to thank all the good people who made the Veterans Day ceremony and parade on Nov. 5 such a success.

First, Robin Ghent and her staff at the veteran affairs office, for a well-organized program. Then Mandy Norrell for a great speech, and all the Vietnam vets who were there to receive the honor they deserved.

In most elections, we choose the candidate we believe will be the most reliable, talented president for the next four years. But this year, the ethics records of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump read like a who-done-it fiction novel.
Both promise to deliver the best health care and the best employment opportunities. Trump promises a fence, and Clinton promises that every e-mail she has ever sent is perfectly above board.
I wrote a poem called “Presidential Promises” years ago. It seems to fit like a glove this time around:

In his guest column, Keith T. Grey Sr. said, “We want all nations to uphold universal human rights.” But he does not say whose idea of human rights should be universal.
Would he enjoy the human rights of pre-war Japan, or the Buddhist’s idea of human rights? If he chooses the Muslim idea of human rights, would he select the Shia, Sunni or Wahhabi idea of universal human rights? He could also choose the Pakistani or Yemeni idea of human rights.

Lancaster residents should be proud of our sheriff. Barry Faile has been very aggressive with litter cleanup, and has created the Lancaster County Litter Program. The program is currently supervised by an inmate supervisor.
The people of Lancaster would not believe all of the trash, including old tires and old television sets, that people put on our roadsides. The trash, dirty diapers, dead animals and furniture end up in our county creeks. Lancaster County citizens could be a big help to our law enforcement officers if they will report any unlawful dumping.

The Democratic candidate for sheriff has suggested two calls to action related to drug use in the community.
First, William McCoy has consistently called for implementation of substance abuse prevention programs in local schools. Had he taken time to study the issue, he would have found that the Coalition for Healthy Youth, a group of 40 public, private, civic and faith-based entities, have worked together for almost 20 years, and have assisted with implementation of evidence-based prevention programs in every school in the district.